Michigan to no longer recognise same-sex marriages, says Governor Rick Snyder

The decision will leave same-sex couples unable to benefit from laws reserved solely for married couples.

Plaintiffs April DeBoer (R) and her partner Jayne Rowse hold hands as they arrive at the Affirmations Center for a news conference after a Michigan federal judge ruled that a ban on same-sex marriage violates the US Constitution and must be overturned, in (Reuters )

More than 300 same-sex marriages performed last weekend will not be legally recognised in the US state of Michigan, Governor Rick Snyder said on Wednesday.

The announcement came a day after an appeals court indefinitely stopped any additional same-sex marriages taking place while it reviews a decision that struck down a 2004 law stating that marriage can only take place between a man and a woman.

Governor Snyder said on Wednesday that while the marriages were legal at the time the stay means the ban now is back in effect.

The decision will leave same-sex couples unable to benefit from laws reserved solely for married couples.

The American Civil Liberties Union said more than 1,000 Michigan laws are tied to marriage.

Four counties took the extraordinary step of granting licenses Saturday before the 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a temporary halt. The stay was extended indefinitely Tuesday.

Snyder, a Republican who keeps mostly silent on social issues, had said very little since US District Judge Bernard Friedman made his historic decision Friday to quash Michigan’s gay marriage ban, after two nurses successfully argued it violated their human rights under the US constitution.

“We did our own homework and I believe this is a reasonable legal position to take based on the available literature and law,” said the Governor according to BBC News.

Attorney General Bill Schuette, also a Republican, has aggressively defended the gay marriage ban, which was approved by 59 percent of voters.

He said it's his job to oppose challenges to the state constitution.

Other politicians are said to be urging US President Barack Obama's administration to recognise the marriages at the federal level, but the US justice department has not yet commented on the matter, BBC News reported.

Additional reporting by AP